From Desmond Mgboh, Kano
Governor of Kano State, Abba Kabir Yusuf, and his predecessor, Abdullahi Ganduje, yesterday, renewed their rivalry following disclosure of alleged attempt by an unnamed lawyer to induce the Kano State National Assembly and State Houses of Assembly Election Petition Tribunal.
A statement by the Commissioner of Information, Baba Dantiye, said “there is a strong rumour going round that some strong forces within the APC whose eyes are on Kano Election Petition Tribunals are bent on repeating what they did in 2019. They are all out to use whatever means to sway justice as was done previously.”
He said it was “an open secret that these strong forces who are well-known for their corrupt attitude are working tirelessly to scuttle the hard earned mandate of the people of Kano state. No doubt, all eyes are looking at the direction of the former Kano state governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje whose accession to the APC national chairmanship was opposed by senior and founding members of the party and indeed majority of Nigerians because of various allegations cases of corruption. The state government views this as a litmus test for present administration to show Nigerians its commitment to fighting corruption and defending democratic principles by ensuring that this case is thoroughly investigated and the culprits prosecuted.”
Reacting, former Commissioner of Information, Mohammed Garba tongue lashed the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) government of Abba Kabiru Yusuf, warning them against dragging the name of the chairman of the Election Petition Tribunal, Justice Flora Azinge to disrepute “simply because of their apparent dismal defence performance at the tribunal.”
He said “the deliberate attempt by the Kano State government to malign the tribunal chairman for fear of what could be possibly the final judgement, by creating a fictitious story and quoting her out of context, amounts to disrespect for the judge and the judiciary in general.”
Garba, who was spokesperson of the Kano State APC”s governorship candidate in the 2023 general elections, observed,that “ When Justice Azinge made the revelation on the alleged attempt to bribe a member of the tribunal by a senior lawyer, she never named any particular party.”
He, however, stated that in order to denigrate the APC in the state, the NNPP government resorted to refer to the APC as the bribe giver.
Garba declared that Kano State government was preempting the possible unreveling of the actual bribe giver by the tribunal and, therefore, wanted to malign the judge.
He recalled that the make-up story, which was contained in a statement issued by the Commissioner for Information, Baba Dantiye, had “further indicated that the government was trying to vilify the tribunal before the judgement so that it could draw sympathy from unsuspecting public in the event it is defeated.”
Garba stated that even with an apparent sign of victory on their side, “The APC has not and will never offer any bribe to anyone involved in the case considering that it had presented facts and figures to prosecute the matter before the tribunal.”
He observed that while the APC had presented all its witnesses during the proceedings of the tribunal who were successfully cross examined, the NNPP government, had failed to present any tangible witness to depend its case.
While reaffirming its commitment to patiently continue seeking legal redress in the case, the APC, he said, is confident it will eventually reclaim it’s stolen mandate.